Minneapolis Connects: May 2016

City of Minneapolis sent this bulletin at 05/05/2016 12:41 PM CDT

May 2016

May is American Indian Month in Minnesota

Monday started the month-long American Indian month celebration
with a kick-off event. The community
gathering began with a morning prayer and a parade from the Little Earth community
to the Minneapolis American Indian Center.
Community members were joined by Councilmember Cano, Councilmember
Warsame, and other local officials.
Staff from the Minneapolis Fire Department, the Minneapolis Police
Department, and MnDOT also joined in the celebration.

Many of the American Indian organizations in the metro
area have open houses and other celebratory events as part of American Indian
Month. You can find a listing of these
events on the American
Indian month calendar.

NCR Welcomes New Neighborhood Support Specialist Ariah Fine

The Neighborhood and Community Relations Department
is pleased to welcome Ariah Fine as our new Neighborhood Support Specialist
beginning May 16, 2016. Ariah is a North Minneapolis
resident and most recently served as the Executive Director of the Cleveland
Neighborhood Association.

He was also one of the project leaders for the Creative
Citymaking team working on the Blueprint for Equitable Engagement. He is a
former Bush Foundation Fellow (2013), and has served in many community
capacities such as neighborhood board member and school site council. Ariah
believes strongly in a resident and relationship driven approach to
community engagement, and has extensive experience in
connecting community in creative ways that break out of traditional public
engagement formats. Please join us in welcoming Ariah!

This year, Neighborhood and Community Engagement Commission (NCEC) seats from neighborhood districts 2, 4, 6 and 8 are up for election through the neighborhood election process. The deadline for applications is May 13. In addition, one (1) Mayoral and two (2) City Council positions are up for appointment through the City’s appointment process.

Elections will be held Thursday, June 16. Neighborhoods should notify NCR of their electors by Wednesday, June 8.

Visit the website for additional details, including the election process and candidate applications.

How long have you been active in your community and what
made you get involved in community work?

I became active in my community for about eight years
directly. Indirectly, I have always been actively involved since I've moved to
my community 24 years ago. After I ran for State office I felt energized and
wanted to get more involved directly with my community.

What do you like most about your neighborhood or community?

My community and Lind-Bohanon is rich in life. We have a
great elementary school, Jenny Lind, and a beautiful park, Bohanon, which I live
across the street from, and we're located about seven and a half minutes north
of downtown. It's like I live in the suburbs after 6:30 in the evening. Kids
playing at the park or cricket being played at the park on Saturdays and
Sundays or any given time during the spring or fall a softball game is going
on. During the summer time the community pool is always packed with families or
people are biking down the Greenway on 49th past my home or families walking
dogs to the river or to Shingle Creek Parkway. Most of all it feels like the
people are good in nature, hard-working and caring about where they live.

Are there other boards and committees you are or have been
on?

Yes. I am the treasurer for Lind-Bohanon Neighborhood Association.
I'm also involved in a couple different committees, their executive committee
and assist in a couple of other communities. I am on the Neighborhoods 2020
committee, the NRP Policy Board, the grievance committee, orientation
committee, and Community Innovation Fund.

Do you have any tips for residents interested in running for
neighborhood boards and/or City boards and commissions?

I would say come to the meetings, get to
know your community organization first, and then when you're ready, volunteer
at one of the events and come on and jump right on in. As for the city boards
or commissions, if you're interested in participating in the big picture, what
a great way to learn how the city works. I was asked by several North
Minneapolis community organization members and a former commissioner to join.
At first I was not sure, then I realized there were great opportunities to
advance the causes of the great people of North Minneapolis.

***

The “Meet a Commissioner” series of the monthly Minneapolis Connects newsletter is intended for readers to get to know representatives of the Neighborhood and Community Engagement Commission (NCEC). The NCEC is a 16 member board that advises the Mayor and City Council on a wide range of community engagement issues.

The NCEC is responsible for developing guidelines for the City’s principal neighborhood funding program, the Community Participation Program, as well as the One Minneapolis Fund and the Community Innovation Fund. The Commission also works to broaden participation on advisory boards and commissions and develops recommendations for improving the City’s public participation process.

Help for Ecuador earthquake victims

On May 5, members of
the Minneapolis Ecuadorian community gathered with other Northeast residents
and NCR staff. The group discussed ways
to help victims of the April’s 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Ecuador and support
local Ecuadorians in the wake of this disaster.

The City, the
Ecuadorian consulate, La Raza radio and members of the Minneapolis Ecuadorian
community formed a partnership to channel both food and dollars to Ecuador. Anyone can
donate any time using this link: https://www.gofundme.com/minnesotaporecuado.

The Neighborhood and Community Relations Department (NCR) is
sending out the draft 2017-2019 Community Participation
Program (CPP) Guidelines for review and comment. These guidelines will
direct how at least $3,000,000 each year will be allocated to recognized
Minneapolis neighborhood organizations for community participation activities.

NCR encourages all neighborhood organization boards to
review the draft guidelines and to provide comments to NCR by June 20, 2016.

Written comments must be received by NCR no later than 4:30
p.m. on Monday, June 20, 2016. Please submit comments in an electronic format
if possible to ncr@minneapolismn.gov.
Comments should be in text format (such as a Word document, a readable pdf, or
via email) so that NCR can provide ADA accessible documents. If it is not
possible to submit comments electronically, mail written comments to:

Position openings with neighborhood organizations

TheCleveland Neighborhood Association (CNA)
is hiring an Executive Director. The Executive Director provides leadership,
vision, direction, and administration for CNA in fulfilling its mission. The
Executive Director is the primary representative of the agency in the community
and is directly responsible for its success. This is a full-time, exempt
position reporting to the Board of Directors. The position is open until filled

The Heritage Park Neighborhood Association is hiring a Director. Responsibilities include directing finance and fundraising, providing leadership that mobilizes the neighborhood, supporting the board of directors, managing the organization and coordinating stakeholder relationships. This part time position is open until filled.

The Neighborhood Coordinator will focus on community leadership and organizing, organizational development, financial management, and administration.Applications are due by Monday, May 9.

The Community Organizer will focus on community leadership and organizing, outreach, and communications. Applications are due by Monday, May 23.

Police Conduct Oversight Commission meeting on Body Cameras

The Police Conduct Oversight Commission (PCOC), will host a forum to discuss the current draft of the Minneapolis Police Department’s Body Camera Policy and the PCOC and community’s concerns regarding that policy. The NAACP, NOC, ACLU and Minneapolis Commission on Civil Rights have been invited to share their perspectives as well.

The forum will be held Saturday, May 14, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., at 330 Second Avenue South, in the First Floor Training Room.

New Funding to Support Vibrant Healthy Communities

The
Minneapolis Health Department has released a new funding opportunity to support
community visions for healthy and vibrant neighborhoods. Community-Driven Solutions for Health
will fund 2 groups for up to $62,000 each over 15 months to engage community
members in exploring and acting upon a pre-identified community challenge
related to healthy eating, physical activity and living free from commercial
tobacco.

A pre-proposal conference will be held Wednesday, May 11.
Participation in the pre-proposal conference is encouraged, but not required.
Completed proposals must be received no later than 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June
8, 2016.

Minneapolis Bike Week is May 16-22

Minneapolis
Bike Week 2016 is a series of events and activities promoting all types of
bicycling with a focus on encouraging those who do not normally ride to give it
a try. The week includes a diverse range of events and activities, including
group rides, classes, commuter pit stops, free breakfasts, celebration
locations and much more.

Minneapolis Bike
Week is presented by the Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition and the City of Minneapolis. Visit the website to add your ride and learn
about all week’s happenings!

The City of Minneapolis invites and encourages participation by every resident to each program, service and event within our city. Should you require an accommodation in order for you to fully participate, or should you require this document in an alternative format, please let us know by contacting 612-673-3737.

About this newsletterMinneapolis Connects is published by the City of Minneapolis Neighborhood and Community Relations Department. If you have questions, please contact ncr@minneapolismn.gov.

For reasonable accommodations or alternative formats please contact Stacy Sorenson at 612-673-2241 or stacy.sorenson@minneapolismn.gov. People who are deaf or hard of hearing can use a relay service to call 311 agents at 612-673-3000. TTY users can call 612-673-2157 or 612-673-2626.